"Freedom to convert" is counterproductive as a generalized doctrine. It fails to come to terms with the complex interrelationships between self and society that make the concept of individual choice meaningful. Hence, religious conversion undermines, and in extremes would dissolve, that individual autonomy and human freedom.

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Saturday, June 14, 2008

Islam and Christianity: Past, Present, and Future

By S.P. Attri (USA)

1. Since we humans are pattern-seeking creatures, as we reconnoiter the past and sift through the horrifying past and the savagery of Islam and Christianity, our inquiry forces us to take a look at the pattern of Islamic and Christian Behavior, and puts a question to ourselves, what is behind all of it.

If Islam and Christianity are put under examination and put to the proof, it becomes obvious rapidly that their fierce and ferocious campaigns of Barbaric Jihad/Crusade are based on Ignorance, Intolerance, Fear, and Superstition. Superstition is the Gatling-Gun of Islamic and Christian Fear.

Islam and Christianity do not have a monopoly on Superstition, but they have over-abundance of it, much more than any other religion in the world...hell of a lot more than what their fair share of Superstition would dictate, hell of a lot more than what Hinduism carries.

2. It should be understood that the superstition and the severity of it, is potently related to geographical and locality factors, operating in the area that we try to examine. It should also be recognized that both Islam and Christianity, have their origin in the desert sands of Arabia. The area of Arabia is mostly arid with hot, dry summers and cool winters. Nile, Tigris, and Euphrates are the only rivers, and these three rivers, continue to mark the region of Arabia most profoundly. More than 90 percent of the land area of Arabia, is desert, much of the Arabian Region consists of flat desert plains and plateaus. Extensive desert areas stretch across the southern reaches including the Libyan Desert, Egyptian Desert, Syrian Desert, Saudi Arabian Desert, and other desert areas of Arabia.

Another prominent feature of Arabia is its scarcity of water resources. Apart from the Nile River, which provides much of the water supply and irrigation systems of Egypt, and the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which supply Iraq, Syria, and Turkey, there are no major rivers or navigable waterways. With such a limited water supply, access to water for drinking, irrigation, and hydroelectricity has become increasingly crucial in many parts of Arabia and the control of water resources has been a frequent source of political and public tension. In the Arabian Wars over territories and

over other scarce resources, the winner gains control of the water resources of the area, this includes the control of rivers and the control of the water wells in the area, that there might be.

3. It is easily discernible that conflicts would occur and persist for the sake of access to the scarce water resources of the Land Mass of Arabia. Additionally, environmental factors also affect water supply that is available for use.

In modern times, Arab lands have acquired wealth, due to the discovery of oil in Arab lands, but such was not the case 2000 years ago, and harsh conditions and poverty prevailed all over Arabia.

Traditionally, majority of Arabs have been nomadic tribes, residing in the vast deserts of Arabia and have been migrating back and forth from summer to winter pastures or living in small rural villages. Arabs (meaning desert-dwellers), have been primarily nomadic, Camel- and sheep-breeding has provided their main livelihood for centuries. Roving tribal groups, who were headed by a sheikh, traveled a defined area of land, depending upon grazing conditions. The size of these groups depends on social context, and can vary from a handful of people to several thousands making up a tribe. Arabs have defined themselves as members of tribes and families, which have the structure of an extended patriarchal family unit.

In Arabian life, poetry expressed in Arabian Language, has represented the ideal standard for literary achievements. Another means of expression has been story-telling, which in the harsh conditions of life, when people are tired, such as in the afternoon, these stories come in handy, not only for amusement, but also to relieve the fatigue. The well-known Arabian Night Stories are examples of this and are reflective of the Imaginative Mind of the Arab.

Food that is eaten by the Arabs, consists of dairy products, such as milk and meat. Agricultural products are rare. Arabs sell and barter products, in order to obtain agricultural foodstuff from other peoples, and wherever they can find. Arabs lived either in tents made out of goat or camel hair, or from fibres from plants. They have also lived in simple houses, built out of mud and stone.

4. Any body who wishes to understand the society and culture of Arabia, needs to grasp right off the bat, that Camels are reliable transportation in the deserts of Arabia. Nothing else has worked quite like the camel, in the physical environment in which the Arabs live. Majority of Arabian population has been illiterate or barely literate, surviving largely by raising sheep, goats, and camel. Some of the Arabs seem indifferent to the harsh conditions of life in the area and would say, "I live here, I feel very good here. I don't care what happens." But majority of the Arabs have had to worry about where their next breakfast is going to be found, or where would they go with their children.

Under these harsh conditions of life, a large number of Arabs have been forced to survive by the vigor of their wits and imagination. A significant percentage of the Arabian population, especially the Bedouins, have engaged in dangerous profession of brigandage and looting, especially of trade caravans, not for reasons of picking up easy money, but because that was the only way for them to survive. Because of this, brigandage has been tolerated and accepted in the Arabia Society, and is not considered a high crime.

5. It can be readily seen that conditions of life in Arabia have been vastly different from the vastly fertile lands of the Indo-Gangetic Plain and of other agriculturally-rich areas in India. The agricultural food production, under the free enterprise system of the Hindus, and under conditions of very low taxes, has been plentiful. India (known as Bharat Varsha) has been fabulously rich and for this reason, has been labelled by the outsiders, as the BIRD OF GOLD. Its fame, because of its great agricultural products and capacity to earn wealth, was known far and wide, outside of India. It is also because of the richness of India, that Barbarians have had their hungry eyes on the wealth of India. After the arrival of Islam, gangs of Islamic Marauders, repeatedly launched invasions into India, not only to slaughter the Hindus, but also to pillage and plunder, and to bring back whatever loot they could find in the land of Hindustan.

Because Hinduism and Hindu Culture have grown under much easier conditions than the harsh and much more difficult conditions of Arabia, it can be seen that the type of religion that would develop in Arabia would be drastically different from the home-grown religions of India. And that is exactly what happened. Whereas the concept of Morality and Dharma (Righteousness) have occupied a Central position in all the religions of India, the Dharma has been singularly absent from Arabia. Pillage and plunder, because it has always existed in Arabia, is not considered all that great a crime and is somewhat tolerated, for a significant section of the Arabian Society, especially the Bedouins (who constitute the large fraction of Arabian Society), robbery and looting has been a means of survival, for them it has been an instrument of necessity.

The environmental necessity of this factor is understandable but the problem arises when these immoral avenues of life are accorded legality and permission under divine sanctions, as has been done in Islam and Christianity, assisted in the process by their demonisation of the Non-Moslems/Non-Christians, with the result that a True Moslem/True Christian engages in these unflattering and foul pursuits, with a clean conscience and is rewarded by his God, by a seat in Heaven, the greatest dream and the greatest ambition of a Moslem as well as a Christian

6. Since we stated, earlier in the discussion, that the superstition and the severity of it, is potently related to geographical and locality factors, it should be obvious that when conditions of life are harsh, such as those operating in the land of Arabia, unknowns and uncertainties of life are going to be abundant, and these would play rough on the minds of the population, which would lead to in-escapable fear, under these conditions superstitions are going to abound, and people are going to turn to superstition for solace. Since there is no easy way to get around this problem, the Clergy (such as the Moslem and the Christian Clergy) would see an opportunity in this environment of fear, they would prey upon the superstitions of the people, they would add superstitions of their own, to build up their own doctrine of religions. The addition of the Image of the Devil and the Threat Of Eternal Damnation in Hell, are perfect examples of these kinds of creative additions to the doctrine of the semitic religions of Islam and Christianity.

But the Clergy (whether Islamic or Christian) does not want competition, to defend and rescue their own doctrine, they blame their competitors by calling them witches and demons, and works of the Devil. These names also come in handy to justify the Clergy's Torture and Torment on the competition. Total peace and tranquility, are completely out of question, under these conditions of harsh life. Many people in the area get caught by hysterical fits, they begin to believe that they are possessed by the Devil. This is a delusion, the Devil is an Imaginary Creature, it is a creature of their own making, but they believe it to be real. Because the Clergy keeps reminding them of the Devil, it becomes a part of the desire on the part of many deluded individuals to lie in dust, and be humbled before their God. The Clergy tells them that either they line up on the plan of God, or they are going to be outside the plan of God, and be sinners, for which they would burn in hell for ever.

7. Neither the Bible nor the Quran, are the books of history, they are books of theology and of ideology. They do not narrate what happened, they narrate what they (their authors and proponents) want you to believe what happened. The narration of both of these books, bursts all bounds of reason and logic. Both of these are books that send the Dogs of Islam and Christianity to war against the Kafir/Heathens. It is because of Bible and Quran that Islam and Christianity are caught up in their Exclusivity Cages. Exclusivity of Islam and Christianity, has set ablaze towns, cities, civilizations, and whole populations, that Islam and Christianity have decimated. The writings of Bible and Quran, are cock and bull stories, they are fabrications and forgeries, rather than historical facts.

This exclusiviity feature of both Islam and Christianity has become a major pillar of both, without this pillar, both will lose a major portion of their grandeur and raison de etre, in fact it is by reason of this exclusivity that both Islam and Christianity, have become Self-Appointed Spiritual Over-Lords throughout the world. And they cannot get off from this High-Pedestal, if they did, then they have no reason for their existence, then they would simply close their shops and disappear. Consequently, they both have to keep up this charade of Exclusivity and keep on demonising people of other religions as "The Worst Creatures" and posture themselves and their own religion as "The Enemy Of Infidels/Heathens."

8. This charade also helps Islam/Christianity economically because science, technology, business, and commerce operate much better outside of Islam and Christianity, especially outside Islam, the Moslems prefer to follow Koran's Edicts and follow Hazrat Mohammad's example, to pillage, plunder, and swindle Non-Moslem Kafirs by all means, they find that there is more profit to be made from the foe than from the friend.

Another reason is that both Islam and Christianity are conquering religions, they are forbidden psychologically to withdraw in the face of Infidels/Heathens, in fact both of them exist as an entity only in the hope of converting the whole world to their own particular creed. Islam and Christianity are too miserable religions to be able to exist, survive, and hold together, on their own, without this agressive external pursuit for converts, which they sometimes refer to as "Soul-Hunting."

The problem becomes much more complicated because both the Western World and Islam/Christianity, agree in their hostility toward Hinduism and prefer to place Hindus at the lowest rung, in terms of status and respectability. This problem is not unique to Hindus, the Jews also were similarly treated, but the Jews have stoutly resisted this attitude and have somewhat overcome this problem. If Hindus resolutely resist this problem, at some future date, they can also expect the same kind of results.

9. Social status is somewhat of a question of magic but the best way of keeping status is by way of our going back to our shastras, have pride in our glorious past, then the sensation of Hindu inferiority complex would fall apart. Given the awful circumstances that the numerous Islamic/Christian Invaders have inflicted upon us Hindus, some of this awful feeling of inferiority is understandable, but it can be overcome.

Here the attitude of our Pseudo-Secular Hindus comes in the way. These Phoney-Liberal (Pseudo-Secular) Hindus scream that Butcher Babar cannot be compared to a terrorist like Osama Ben Laden, has not Nehru told us that Babar was both charming and tolerant, a true secularist. Like other things that Nehru has written, this assessment is also not accurate. Babar was a religious fanatic, he saw himself as a Ghazi, an Islamic Warrior, on a Jihad to uproot Kufr and Infidelity. Babar himself says that Hindustan was in the grip of Kafirs, he took it by the force of arms, he massacred the Infidels, and also brought them into the bosom of Islam. This was the real Babar, who even composed the following poem, after becoming a Ghazi:

For the sake of Islam, I became a wanderer, I battled Infidels and Hindus. I determined to become a martyr Thank God I became a Holy warrior.

This was the same Butcher Babar who used to build towers, with the usage of decapitated Kafir-Hindu heads. This was the same Babar who gave India the Babri Masjid, at the spot where a Ram Mandir stood, a spot held sacred by Hindus. He and his successors did not care for the spot of Ram Mandir, a place of worship and a spot held sacred by the Hindus, they saw the Replacing Babri Mosque, as a mark of Islamic Conquest. So here is all the plain truth. Ram Janambhumi is a national symbol, the Babri Masjid is an imposition and a barbaric imperialism of Babar. Those who support Babri Masjid, either identify with Babar's Imperialism or are willing to live as slaves.

10. Civilized nations call these atrocities as high crimes, but Moslems label them as Jehad, and regard them as lawful and good (according to Koran) and they promise Janat (Moslem's Heaven) as a reward for such revolting actions. Islam also provides plenty of free sex and carnal enjoyment for the Moslems, plus the plunder of non-Moslem societies. Thus sex and violence are two pillars of Islam, the murderous attitude of the Moslems, welds the Moslems into a formidable fighting force for engaging in Jehad and building an Islamic Empire. In addition, these terribly predatory actions serve as the best ways to please their Allah.

These criminal acts of violence and wickedness, have the full approval in both Islam and Christianity, and have been constituted with the sole purpose of helping the Moslems and Christians, gain an entry into their respective heavens, places which are wonderful areas of sexual delights. It has been the top priority of both Islam and Christianity, to totally destroy the Pre-Islamic and Pre-Christian cultures of every land, without exception, wherever either of them went. It is not difficult to understand why both Islam and Christianity offer such high rewards to those conducting Jehad/Crusade. Men generally do not risk their lives, without the expectation of great rewards. Leaders of both Islam and Christianity, knew this very well and they conceived their religious doctrines accordingly. History records stories of voluminous amounts of Kaifr/Heathen booty that Islamic and Christian Armies gathered in their campaigns against the Kafirs/Heathens.

11. If the Moslem or the Christian God is the real God, would he order his followers to engage in this kind of slaughter and plunder of people of other religions. Does any God, who is worthy of worship, need to bribe his followers with these kind of allurements? Would God need to take advantage of man's weakness for sex and un-earned wealth, in order to recruit his followers? These kinds of edicts of God are not divine, they are politics and are totally un-worthy of real God, which the Moslem and the Christian Gods cannot be. It can, therefore, be seen that Jehad/Crusade cannot be divine activities, these are the activities of Moslems and Christians, because of their desire to murder and enslave people for increasing the number of followers of their religions, for having greater influece, and control things in the world. There is not a bit of spirituality in this barbaric activity, there is also not a bit of spirituality in either Islam or Christianity. That is why neither Islam nor Christianity are religions at all. Both are ideologies, theo-political ideologies and barbaric in their modus operanda. As an example, a Moslem is allowed to have sexual intercourse with any number of concubines and slave girls, but Islam does not consider these women good enough for marriage by the Moslem, the Moslem can enjoy them but he is not allowed to marry any of them. What kind of civility or morality is this? In India, the Moslem rulers would indulge in sex and debauchery all night and would pray to Allah next morning, as an expression of their devotion to high morality. In the West, the Christian Clergy, especially the Catholic Priests, are said to indulge in sex on saturdays, on Sundays they come to Church, as an expression of remorse for the previous night's wild activities.

12. I have often heard people tell me that religions like Islam and Christianity worked in Medieval Periods and that they cannot survive in the coming age of education and enlightenment, and that science and education of people will unmask both Islam and Christianity as Ignorant Beliefs. Those who hold this view have not thought through the problem of Islam and Christianity at all. They fail to notice that both Islam and Christianity scored a much greater advance in the second millenium than in the first millenium, even though the expansion of science, technology, and knowledge was much greater in the second millenium than in the first millenium.

What is the reason for this paradox? The reason is simply this that even though science promises to liberate us from the drudgery of life and also liberate us from the uncertainty of life, in actual practice, it does not liberate us from the uncertainty of life at all. In fact, it does exactly the opposite. Why? Because science increases not only the area of the Known, but it also increases the area of the Unknown, it increases the area of the Unknown by a much larger amount than it does the area of the Known. Mankind is always afraid of the Unknown and his fears land him in the arms of Superstitions, which is a ready-made environment for religions like Islam and Christianity, both of which thrive like crazy in the environment of Superstition. (It is worth recollecting that both Islam and Christianity originated in Arabia, where conditions of life and survival were very harsh and difficult and because of this, Superstitions had a much stronger hold in Arabia than that in India, where conditions of life were much easier)

Because of this, any prospect of the decline of Islam and Christianity, due to advancing science and technology, does not have a sound history. Advancing technology brings with it new and improved methods of producing commodities and goods, with lots of social upheaval in the process. Millions of jobs disappear, millions of new jobs are created. The result is lot of fear, uncertainty and insecurity in the minds of lots of people, colossal amounts of new superstitions move in. This is the kind of environment that is ready made for religions like Islam and Christianity, who besides Jehad and Crusade, also engage in apocalyptic statements and pronouncements of Armageddon, warning people that "The End Of The World Is Near" or "The Day Of Judgment Is Soon Arriving." These kinds of announcements scare the hell out of lots of people. That is why these kinds of scare tactics work like a charm for Overly-Superstitious Religions like Islam and Christianity, they not only keep the Moslem and Christian faithfulls in line, but they also help them to win new converts, in the environment of general uncertainty, brought about technological upheaval of society.

13. What does it tell us Hindus? It tells us Hindus not to indulge in wishful thinking that both Islam and Christianity would disappear all by themselves, under the influence of expansion of education and science. This is not going to happen and Hindus would be much better advised to confront, stand up and fight both Islam and Christianity, otherwise Hindus will have to undergo a purgatory of un-imaginary misery, brutality, and savage barbarism, at the hands of Moslems and Christians. Countless Hindus shall die in the apocalyptic slaughter of Hindus, at the hands of Moslems and Christians, and this could come with un-expected suddeness and fury. Any hope/dream of peace and tranquility, with Moslems and Christians around in the world of ours, is only an empty dream.